Softball team celebrates magical milestone two decades later

File photoMembers of the 1991 Pierce Construction Softball team pose for a photo during their undefeated summer. From left, Brian Devivo, Rick Hoey, Rob Kelley, Keith Savoie, and Marc Canagello.

By JIMMY KELLEY

The term “Boys of Summer” does not usually conjure up images of men in their 30s playing slow pitch softball, but for the members of the Pierce Construction team from Tolland, Conn., the Summer of 1991 was one they will never forget.

“We played 174 games that year,” team member Brian DeVivo of Chicopee said. “If we didn’t have a game, we would jump in a car, drive down to Connecticut and hit balls. The commitment was evident in the work we put in.”

That summer, Pierce won the United States Specialty Sports Association Class “B” World Series by first winning the Northeast Regional and then defeating the other 15 regional champions at the World Series held in Sterling Heights, Mich.. They went a perfect 5-0, wrapping up what had been a perfect summer.

“What made it so special was that we truly were the best of the best,” said Mark Canegallo, who was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. “The way the tournament works now is you pay your money and you’re there. We had to earn it, and that made it that much more special.

The team, which was sponsored by Fran Pierce Construction, may have been centered out of Tolland, but in reality, this was an all-star team of sorts. Six members of the 1991 Pierce team hailed from Western Massachusetts and had previously played for a team that consistently competed with Pierce.

“When our old team broke up, we had teams from all over New England calling us,” said Hoey of how they found Pierce. “We had played against Pierce for years and it just felt like the right place for us all to end up.”

The former Western Mass. Imports proved to be the difference for Pierce as four of the six players were named to the All-World team, including Cannegallo’s MVP award.

Those six men, all of whom still live in Western Mass., remain close to this day. They make an annual golf trip to Florida, frequently meet for dinners and gatherings, and Hoey is Kelley’s oldest daughter’s godfather.

“Some of the best stories aren’t even from the tournaments,” Kelley said of the bond that team shared. “The road trips, airports, weddings, bachelor parties, birthdays, and everything else that went along with being part of the team. That was what made the experience as amazing as it was.”

This year is the 20th anniversary of that magical season, and to honor them, the USSSA decided to induct them into their Hall of Fame as their 2011 Team of Distinction. The ceremony, which was held on March, was attended but all but one member of the team, proving just how special that summer was.

"The Connecticut guys sat at one table and we sat at the other,” said DeVivo with a smile on his face. “Just like old times.”